People Column

Sammie Campbell Parrish has said she will step down as the
superintendent of the Cleveland public schools at the end of March. In
a statement last week, Ms. Parrish described her 2 1/2-year tenure with
Ohio's largest school system as a way "to make a difference in the
educational lives of 74,000 largely poor, largely African-American
children."

"I have a sense that perhaps my greatest contribution in Cleveland
has already been made," Ms. Parrish said. Just as she began thinking
along those lines, Ms. Parrish said, she was offered a job as the dean
of North Carolina Central University's college of education, which she
accepted.

Despite the Cleveland district's recurring financial problems, Ms.
Parrish said her work there has been rewarding. But, she added, "like
most big-city superintendents, my family life, health, and emotional
well-being have all been put on the back burner. My intuitive sense of
timing said 'accept the opportunity--move on."'

The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education has
named Marsha Levine to head a project to devise accreditation standards
for professional-development schools. The project is designed to
advance reforms in teacher-preparation programs and to enhance
professionalism among teachers. Ms. Levine is a member of the research
faculty at the graduate school of education and human development at
George Washington University....For some people, the spotlight of fame
can shine too bright. That seems to be the case for the Pine Bluff,
Ark., teenager who drew national acclaim after he saved the lives of 14
people, then missed the assembly to honor him because he skipped school
that day. Steven Hines rescued 12 children and two adults trapped in a
burning mobile home on Feb. 11. To honor his heroics, Pine Bluff High
School's principal, Andrew Tolbert, planned an assembly. When the guest
of honor didn't show, the assembly was postponed.

Leslie Loble has been tapped as U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert B.
Reich's chief of staff. As the Labor Department's deputy assistant
secretary for policy and budget, she played a key role in last year's
passage of the Clinton Administration's Goals 2000 legislation.

--Adrienne D. Coles

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